Topic

Make the Future – NT 5.2 Program Improvement Process for Equity in STEM™ (PIPE-STEM™)

Topic Progress:

Female teacher and teenage female students in science lab

By Argonne National Laboratory (Science Careers in Search of Women 2009) [CC-BY-SA-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

The STEM Equity Pipeline Project was designed to translate current research on gender equity in STEM into practice and transfer this knowledge to and through state offices of education, especially those responsible for the implementation of the Perkins Act. The PIPE-STEM project provides coaching to educators working to improve equity in their schools and classrooms as well as their performance on the Perkins accountability measures.

PIPE-STEM is a data-driven decision making institutional change process focused on increasing the participation, completion and transition of underrepresented groups in STEM related programs of study. The process includes five modules and by the conclusion of the project, participants will be able to:

  • Identify differences in STEM participation and performance, and benchmark local STEM data with regional, state, and national data for students disaggregated by gender, race, disability and socio-economic status.
  • Explain the research concerning females’ and other groups’ underrepresentation in STEM fields.
  • Implement and evaluate research-based activities and instruction that will improve females’ and other underrepresented groups’ achievement in, retention in, and completion of STEM courses.
  • Enhance the achievement, participation and retention levels, and completion rates of diverse groups of students in STEM courses.

The NAPE Education Foundation (NAPEEF) started the STEM Equity Pipeline with funding from the National Science Foundation in the fall of 2007 (HRD-0734056).

In addition to PIPE-STEM, the National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity has a comprehensive website that has resources, professional development webinars, conference information, policy briefs, and research, and technical assistance opportunities. The web address is www.napequity.org.

You may also request additional information and professional development for your school.